Mahler Appeal and Sean Flanagan© Photo Healy Racing
What is it about Sean Flanagan on a Saturday? Well, a week on from a Cork treble Flanagan was excelling at the weekend again at Wexford today, doubling up on Garrett Power's Mahler Appeal in the T.C. Cullen Memorial Handicap Chase.
Part-time pilot Flanagan flew on from Cork to win on Minx Tiara at Killarney last Sunday, and he kept his many supporters at his home track this afternoon happy, when earlier triumphing on Paul Nolan's Kiltealy Park
There were plenty smiling too following the win of Mahler Appeal - always up there in a pace-setting role. He beat Hunt Museum by twelve lengths, much to the delight of those that backed him into 9/2 from 7/1 on track, and from bigger earlier.
Power was on lead-up duties and it was left to Flanagan to reflect: "He is very leery and I would have loved a bit of company, but if I waited for company I probably wouldn't have been going quick enough. He is a funny sort of lad and I've actually only ridden him once before. You'd squeeze him down to a fence and he'd let you down but he is very quick at them so and I just kept going forward.
"We've gone a nice gallop and to be fair to him he has battled it out all the way to the line. He had no company so he has done it the hard way. I've ridden very little for Garrett down the years but it's great to get that one. The first day I rode him was his first run over fences and it was on better ground and he just didn't operate on the day.
"He'd stay all day. If the going was better, he'd have to go further because he is not very quick, but at the same time if he had a bit of company he might be sharper."
R. Deegan, rider of Greenhill Damsel trained by Garrett James Power, reported to the Clerk of the Scales that his mount burst a blood vessel. This was subsequently confirmed by the IHRB Veterinary Officer.
(DM & EM)
